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TRP: Roddy and Amari (Scorch Marks)
Muse: The Sugar Glider. It's night, around 10PM, the stars are twinkling in the sky, and Amari is alone on the deck scrubbing burns stains off. Footsteps could be heard moments before a Tortle head poked up from the stairway. Hansel had been walking by, and Roddy continued the pattern of the last few days of hurriedly leaving as soon as he spotted the half-orc. At least the deck had a lot more maneuvering room if he decided to follow- one of these days Roddy knew that he would. But there was someone else up here too. Goro's mom, Am-y? Working hard- even at this late hour. "Uh, hello," Roddy called. "It's- kinda late for that don't you think?" Coyote: Amari wipes the sweat off her face. Goro is gone out for the day and hasn't come back yet; his door was empty. He isn't there to scold her for over-working or drag her off to bed. "I suppose," she says. "Would you like to come talk and help? You're Rodger Hammerstein the Third, right?" Muse: "Sir Rodger Hammerstein the- you know what, call me Roddy," he said. "Um. Well I was implying that you should stop and maybe go get some sleep?" But even as he was saying that, Roddy found himself crouching down and reaching for a brush. Coyote: Amari snorts out a laugh. He's probably right. She hands him a brush into. Most of the burns are completely gone; she's just going over them one last time at this point. And then maybe one last time again after that. "How have you been holding up, child?" she says kindly. "Handling the disaster well?" Muse: The 'disaster' that Roddy's mind jumps to is likely not the one that Amari meant. "Er, well, I'm- not sure? It's- really confusing and I'm not sure what to- oh wait you're talking about the Ripley one aren't you." Roddy glances around the deck, fails to see any stains, and picks a random spot to start scrubbing. "Well on that part I suppose I'm holding up all right. Most of us are here, we're able to get away to safety, doesn't seem like there's much to worry about any more." Coyote: There's not much to worry about anymore. Suddenly, Amari is bone-achingly tired. She sits back on her haunches and folds her legs. There is still laundry to be done, and someone needs to stain the deck to protect the bare spots, and trash to be collected, meals to be cooked. She misses Joan. Joan would come find her, pick up her, toss her over her shoulder, and carry her off to bed while Amari protested. Joan would set her down and make her sleep, and Amari isn't sure how to sleep on her own anymore. Amari feels angry, and spiteful, and she hasn't felt those things in a long time. So... damned angry. She asked Joan not to do this. She wanted to go live quietly in the woods somewhere with a garden and with her son and her wife. She begged Joan to leave things be and stop fighting things like this, stop getting wrapped up in this. Amari puts her face into her hands, eyes stinging. She knows what she needs to do: She needs to comfort Roddy and be here for him. But she just-- She can't. Muse: It takes Roddy a moment to notice Amari's sudden stillness. Concentrating on scrubbing his brush back and forth, not really doing much good, and then- Amari's hands aren't where they should be. He glances up, and- she's not looking well. ...Where was Goro when Roddy needed him? Ugh, now Roddy'd have to say something. And he was terrible at this! "Er, um, are you alright?" he asked, reaching out to rest his hand on Amari's shoulder. "...You did a good job on the deck. If that helps." Coyote: Amari looks around for a moment, blinking. The deck wavers in front of her eyes like it's underwater. No one is around. She reaches over, wraps her arms around Roddy's shoulders, and starts to bawl. Heaving, gasping sobs. She meant to just cry a little, but once a single tear came out it just--- all came out. She is so, so tired. Muse: Oh no. This was bad. Instinctively, Roddy wrapped his arms around Amari and awkwardly patted her on the back. "It's all right, it's all right, it's all right," he half-chanted, empty words merely meant to keep him saying something. Coyote: "No it's not," she wept. "Joan's gone, and the deck is ruined, and Sugar was so happy about getting this ship, and Goro likes Sugar and he won't talk about it, and-- the laundry isn't done, and--I burned dinner, and-- I left my favorite skirt behind, and my garden is dying, and... and...." Muse: "And Ripley's gone?" Coyote: Amari hiccups. She nods frantically. Muse: Roddy doesn't know what to do, other than maybe hug her a little tighter. If he says anything he suspects it'll be the wrong thing. But he's still Roddy, so: "Well at least you still have Goro. You're not totally out of family." Coyote: "But he doesn't even need me anymore!" she says. "He's... he's all grown up now, and he's doing his own-- his own laundry, and... soon he's going to get married and have babies, or.... god, he's turning out just like Joan,god forbid he goes off graverunning and gets hurt and I won't be there, and, oh, my baby. He's got this.... he's got this pink tiefling girlfriend now and she's so cute I don't even know how to talk to her, and...." Muse: "Goro has a girlfriend?" Roddy was shocked. Wait, pink, teifling- "Goro's girlfriend is Sugar?" Roddy was even more shocked. "Why Goro of all people? I could have sworn Sugar was too nice for him! But then again she also did try to kill Jonn so maybe she's meaner than I thought." Coyote: "Oh, I don't know!" Amari says, still sniffling. "He's just-- he's so cute-- I catch him s-staring at her all the t-time, and... s-sometimes I catch him just smiling at her like an idiot, and... he doesn't th-think she likes him, though, but she's just so precious, and I tried being very nice to her, but-- but.... I don't know how to talk to her. She's so nice, though. Gosh, I hope she likes him." Wow, she feels a lot better now that she's crying. "Goro deserves a... n-nice girl," Amari said. "He was s-so... cute when he was little.... I mean, probably, anyway, I guess I don't actually know." Muse: "You don't- oh right. He did say you weren't his real mom." Roddy patted Amari's back a couple times, just so he had something to do. "You know if Ripley were here we could just lock everyone in the room and have her cast the zone of truth thing but she's not so I really dunno what we could do." Waaaait. "...I need to stop bringing up Ripley." Coyote: Amari recoils, shocked. She stares at him. "Goro said I wasn't his real mom?" she says. Muse: ...Roddy is very good at making this better isn't he? "Well, if it helps, I'd just said he didn't take after you much?" he offered. Coyote: Amari blinks to him, blankly, her eyes red-rimmed and swollen. Muse: "...Well he doesn't," Roddy muttered. Maybe a compliment would help. "You're very sweet, you see. Very- polite." Coyote: Amari crosses her arms. "Goro is too." God, she misses Joan. It's so selfish of her, though. She misses Joan because Joan forced her to stop working and go to bed. Why can't she do that on her own? Muse: "Well see you have to think that you're his mother," Roddy explained. Instantly he regretted it- he'd already made her cry once he didn't need to do it again. Coyote: "Roddy," she says, and takes his hand very gently. It's a reflex at this point. "If someone hurt you, you would want them to apologize, right?"(edited) Muse: Roddy is not sure what this has to do with anything. It shows on his face. But he goes along with it. "Well, I suppose so?" Coyote: "Okay," Amari says. "Well, you just said something very, very hurtful to me. And something very, very hurtful about Goro." Muse: Roddy stares. And then starts to say something. Pauses, thinks a minute, and then tries again. "So, you want an apology." Coyote: "Do you feel sorry you hurt me?" she says gently. Muse: Roddy has to think about that one. A long time. He's not used to asking if he's sorry, usually it was being told to be sorry. "I guess- I feel a little guilty? For saying it?" he said. "But I'm not sorry about my opinions." Coyote: She recoils again. She curls up and rests her head on her knees for a long time. She is so tired. She can feel tears running down her face again. "Okay. Then you are not sorry you hurt me." She gets up to go to bed. Muse: Roddy thinks for a moment about sayings something else. Or going after her. But ultimately- what would he say to make it better? So he tossed a "Good night!" at her back, and set about taking care of the mess Amari had left behind. Coyote: Amari nods, then slips off to bed. She went to the common barracks, the area with several hammocks. She makes a tunic of Joan's pillow, then goes to sleep, feeling cold and alone. The same way she felt every night Joan slept in her office, too preoccupied with saving the world to come home. Just like Goro, now. end Category:Text Roleplay